Talent

Today is the 2nd to last day of school for my students... we are the only school district in Nebraska that has classes after Memorial Day - but what can you do! Today we had a "Talent Show" for our students. It was a great opportunity to let them show off the things they were good at. We had a wide variety of talent from singing/dancing to artwork to comedy. I can't even begin to express how proud I am of these "young adults". The hard work and dedication they put in to doing something they really enjoy is such a gift... and they don't even know it.
When my sister and I were younger, we would get dressed up put on "shows" for our family members. We had several different outfits to change into and many props to utilize for our concerts. I remember my favorite outfit used to be my pleather black pants and vest outfit that Cassie and I bought for Halloween one year. I look back on that outfit and pictures from that Halloween and can't help but smile. We had so much fun that Halloween dressing up as rockstars... it may just be my favorite Halloween yet :) Anyways, back to the show we would put on. Caitlin would have to dress up just like me - but maybe in a different colored outfit and do everything I would do. I can't help but reminisce about the many fun activities my siblings and I would do together. It makes me think about all the fun things I have to look forward to while Marcus and I raise our family and I can't help but become excited :)

Tomorrow is the last day of school, and I have to be honest in saying - I'm so excited/nervous! I'm not sure how much sleep I am going to get tonight in earnest for the infamous "last day of school" :) I am anxious to get my summer started - and for those of you who are already doing that... I'm envious!!

Good things come to those who wait...

Life is especially good today. Marcus got offered a new job!!! ARID Resources, a residential and commercial construction company out of Omaha, offered him the "Project Manager and overseer of Radon" position. This job offer is especially great because it gets his foot in the door with a construction company! Marcus and I have been waiting for a position like this to come along and I couldn't be happier for him! He really deserves this offer and I can't think of a better phrase: good things come to those who wait ;) With that said, I'll just say "Congratulations" to my hubby - you deserve this and you will do great!

Life is flashing by like a speed of light. My seniors graduated on Tuesday and I am very proud of them! It is a great feeling to see them succeed. We had a wonderful ceremony at our administration center with the families and friends of the graduates! It's really something great to be a part of... just one more reason I absolutely love my job :)

I am 28 weeks today - and still growing. We started our prenatal classes last night and will do those for the next 6 weeks. I think they are going to be very beneficial to both of us and it's fun to meet a few couples who are going through the same thing we are! This baby of ours has gotten really good at taking my breath away (literally!) He/she kicks so hard into my ribs, that I find myself trying to catch my breath. Marc has seen him/her kick my stomach so hard that it moves. We find ourselves just staring at my belly for minutes at a time watching all of the movement. It really is a neat thing to watch ;) I have started reading books in the nursery almost every night and it just gets me even more excited for the baby to be here. I've also found myself playing some Journey and REO Speedwagon through headphones to my belly. This child is going to know good music ;)
Here are a few snapshots of the nursery.. when Katie and Caitlin were here a couple weekends ago, we rearranged things around in the nursery and went through some of my shower gifts:

Thoughts

I am terrified of becoming a mother.

Marcus and I just had a discussion tonight about how we never really had a "plan" for our lives after our marriage. We knew we wanted to get married, and we would hopefully find jobs in our "field of study", but we never had a plan for what path we would take to reach those goals. I am proud of where him and I are today, don't get me wrong... I'm just terrified. I don't know if I am ready to be a mother. I understand it's a little too late to make this comment now... being as I'm one week away from my 3rd trimester, but the thought of being so responsible for a human being is very scary. I'm sure every new mother/father feels this way, and I will be at ease the minute I meet my little one, but I can't help but have worries and doubts about the path we have taken. I should understand that I am so fortunate to have gotten pregnant, and that because it did happen, it must have happened for a reason :) Please don't misinterpret what I'm saying... I know how blessed I am to be given the gift of becoming a mother - there are just fears and worries I can't help but ponder. Sometimes I think it may have been easier for Marcus and I to wait until we were settled or had our own home here - or to have made sure this is where we are going to settle down and raise a family. Instead, we are still renting a house and making sure this is where we want to settle down.. I guess it's the fear of the unknown that is bothersome.
Maybe I just need to have faith that everything will work out the way it's supposed to?!

Reminded

I was reminded this morning that LIFE is just too short. I feel like such a "negative nancy" because I forget this all too often and it is so unfortunate that something awful has to happen for people to be reminded of something that should be a simple part of our everyday life. I should remember every morning when I wake up that I am so blessed to have another day to take in the sunshine (or rain), rather than snooze the alarm for a third time just so I can get "5 more minutes" before I get ready for work. I shouldn't have to be reminded that I am such a lucky individual to have the family (including in-laws) that I do have, or the friends I am surrounded with every day. We should remember that the glass is ALWAYS half full, rather than half empty... because if we were to live as if the glass were half empty, we wouldn't be where we are today, plain and simple.

Life is too short to be anything but happy.
Life is meant for us to follow our dreams and be who we are destined to be.
Life is something we should be proud of.
Life is something we should take with arms wide open and embrace, because you never know when it's going to end.
Life is truly a gift.

I am going to end this post with a quote that I feel is appropriate for today, but before that, I am going to challenge my readers. Go out today, whether it is rainy, cloudy, or sunny, and EMBRACE the day. Take the time to call the ones you love - even if it's just to tell them you love them. Hold your loved ones close and remind them how much they mean to you. Let go of any grudges you have against someone, because you never know what can happen. Please, don't forget to smile and be reminded of the blessings you have in life... because we all have one huge blessing - LIFE

"Our attitude towards life determines life's attitude toward us."

Playing "Catch Up"

Like I stated yesterday, there is lots to catch up on... so here goes:

It's Monday - back to work... it is 95 DEGREES right now in Omaha... yes, you read that right, 95 degrees!! Crazy, right? BUT... I'm not complaining :)

I had a fun-filled Saturday night - it was PROM for our students. The night was such an inviting time and my students had so much fun. A few of my favorite songs were "ChaCha Slide" and "Don't Stop Believing"... what I enjoyed even more was the fact that my student knew every SINGLE word to Journey! Completely made my night!

Yesterday, Marcus and I decided to tap into our crafty sides. I had gotten this idea from a friend's blog and decided to google the process so I could practice on my own. I have started gathering ideas for baby A's nursery, when that time comes! So I had to experiement... I made an "M" for my friend Sara's baby, Maggie. Her nursery is pink, white, and gray, which is why I chose the color scheme I did. Super easy and very affordable!! If you want to know how to make it, just let me know!!

I am almost 26 weeks.. and I need a new and updated belly bump picture, but for the time being, here are a couple that I took last week.

I also babysat Maggie last week and I had SUCH a blast and that is totally an understatement. She is currently 3 months and is starting to laugh and make noises. We sat and watched American Idol for the longest time and then I decided to have a little photo shoot... here is a sneak peak (all of 2 pictures :)

Alright! Hope you enjoyed "catch up" - Anderson style :)

Dedication

Once again, there is much to catch up on, but you will have to wait until tomorrow for that. I am dedicating this post entirely to all the Mothers out there. Happy Mothers Day :) First and foremost, I want to thank my mother for giving me life. My sister introduced me to a quote that I feel is appropriate for this occasion - "No gift to your mother can ever equal her gift to you - LIFE" I understand I am unaware of the full extent of this quote, but for the past 6 months, I have been realizing that I have a life inside of me. Marcus and I have started the miracle of life for our little one and we are only going to gain more responsibility once he/she is born. I am one step closer to truly appreciating my mother's role for the past 26 years of being a mother; one step closer to taking on the responsibilities a mother has; one step closer to putting baby A's needs before our own. I am anxious to get started in my new "role" as a mother and truly understand what it means "give someone life". With that being said, I would like to say the following to my mother: 

"Thank you for giving me the life I live today. Thank you for teaching me, loving me, guiding me, and  showing me what I am capable of. Thank you for having faith in me and for being the best role model I could possibly ask for. I have some big shoes to fill and I can only hope and pray that I come close to being as great of a mother as you. I love you"

I want to close out this post by saying that I realize how blessed I am to still have my mother here with me today. I want to let my readers, who may not be as fortunate as I to have their mothers here with them today, know that life is such a blessing we are given and I will not forget your pain and void you may feel on this day. Remember that your mothers are looking down on you and are so very proud of the person you have become today :)

So Many Things...

I feel as if I've been MIA this week. This week has been one of the craziest weeks for me at work... I am NOT complaining (remembering my promises) but merely grateful that this week has gone by as fast as it has. I have had a meeting every evening this week for new students transitioning to our program as well as IEPs for my own caseload. I need to give credit where it is due and say, "I have gotten through the week out of God's pure grace." I found myself asking him to give me the strength and determination to give my students, my all, every day. As everyone knows, each job out there has its own trials and tribulations, but I think that's what helps make us who we are as individuals. Not everything is going to be a 'walk in the park' all the time. I am aware of this, as are all of you. Yes, it'd be nice if that were the case, but let's be realistic. Life is full of surprises and we need to embrace them... for everything happens for a reason. Simply stated.

I need to give a shout out to my sister-in-law KT for she just received her acceptance letter to UNO :) She will 100% be coming down to live with Marcus and I in August and we are so extremely excited about her transition. I personally can't wait to see her change lives, (as anyone that knows her knows she has that potential), and I wouldn't expect anything less than the best from her. SO, Congratulations KT!!

I am going to end this post with a quote that is intended for a loved one, but meant for all.

"People deserve a second chance, but not a third"

Life is too short to be anything but happy. It is unfortunate that it takes something significant to happen for us to realize this bold fact, but I guess that is life. It's what makes it interesting. It is what makes it a 'lesson'... it's what we take from that 'lesson' that matters.

Guilty Pleasure

I am going to encourage anyone who has not read a series of books by Emily Giffin... to pick them up ASAP and read :) "Something Borrowed" is the first book of the series. Some of you may recognize the title - as it was made into a movie that will premiere this Friday, May 6th. The book is definitely a "guilty pleasure", but totally worth it! It is a great mixture of the relationships out there along with friend "drama" I'm sure most of us have dealt with (in one way or another). I have decided to spare all of you with my review of Giffin's books, so here is her website. Click 'books' on the top bar and check out 'about the book' on each one. Guaranteed, you will be intrigued :)
As you know, I am a fan of reading the book and then seeing the movie, so I think I will read "Something Borrowed" before the 13th. That weekend, my sister and sister-in-law will be coming down to visit and we are going to see the movie. I figure it's good protocol to brush up on the details before I see the movie.
Feel free to update me if you choose to read the book - and then again when you are finished! Hope you enjoy!

Projects

Happy 1st of May!! It is so crazy how fast this year has gone by - almost unbelievable! Marcus picked up some overtime today, so I have the house to myself... again :( I have told myself I am going to keep busy with projects around the house - they entail:

1. Touching up the dresser we bought at a garage sale yesterday! It is perfect for our nursery and we got it at a great deal :) It has a few scratches, so I am going to just touch it up today! Here is a picture of the dresser before:

2. Laundry... nuff said. I don't care for laundry, especially because our laundry is down in the basement... and that basement really creeps me out. I guess I'll have to get over it.

3. Take Kdawg on a W-A-L-K. I feel that if I speak out loud, she is going to start going nuts with excitement and that will make me feel bad, as we aren't going to go yet... today looks GORGEOUS outside and I can't wait to open up some windows and get some fresh air in this house (I apologize to those of you in Minnesota who have snow)

4. Organizing the nursery. We have diapers and gifts from my shower in the living room still because there was nowhere to put them. Now that we have a dresser, I am going to attempt to organize the nursery and get some of this stuff situated! (I think I'm starting to like this "domesticated" thing)

5. Attempt to do some cooking. I am going to make spaghetti so it's ready when Marcus gets home from work. I don't do this often enough for him, and I think he would really appreciate that.. you know what they say - the way to a man's heart is through his stomach... or something like that ;)

There is my day! I hope all of you have something fun and exciting to do on the 1st of May! I better get started if I'm going to have supper ready by 6pm!